Always
by CornflakeCrunch
Summary: Lily visits Petunia one night and talks to her about how thankful she is for looking after Harry, and also how disappointed she is. One shot.


**A/N:** A one shot that happens after the Dursleys leave their house. That's it.

You might want to listen to Lily's Theme (on Youtube) for a nice effect.

* * *

Petunia lay on the hard mattress listening to the night. She knew she would've been infinitely happier in her own bed, at her own house back in Surrey but she also knew just how necessary it was that she went into hiding. She remembered what it had been like last time, when that Voldemort man had started a war, she remembered seeing the look in her sister's eye, the constant fear, the sadness.

She turned on her side to look at the depressing, wallpapered wall of the hotel she was staying in with Vernon and Dudley, who at the moment were out doing late night shopping for food as they were all doing their best not to be seen. Her sigh filled the room. This was all because of Harry, the boy she had sworn to protect, and while she had let him into her house, given him a place to sleep and eat, although for those 17 years she was content and able to accept her somewhat harsh treatment of him, all she could think about was how it had been rather unnecessary.

Right now she tried to console herself with the thought that it had all been Vernon's fault, that he had been the one so downright refusing to treat the boy with any trace of humility, but Petunia knew that she hadn't been powerless to his opinions. She knew she should have tried, he was her _nephew _for God's sake. Her sister's son. She had loved Lily so much, even after she was accepted into Hogwarts, and although she knew that the way she treated Harry had been a reflection of the years and years of rejection that Petunia had felt living with her sister, she also knew that that had been no excuse. Harry had been a sweet boy for as long as she could remember, from the very day she had found him on the doorstep to the day he started talking.

She turned again in the uncomfortable bed, wishing that her son and husband would return, being alone for so long just gave her a chance to feel the feelings she had been repressing for the last 2 decades. She felt a sob rising in her throat and then, just as she was reaching over for a tissue, she felt a slight shift of weight on her bed and moved to turn on the light on the bedside table.

"Tuny?"

Petunia realised, with horror, that Lily was sitting on her bed, looking at her. She uttered a soft scream and sat upright, pressing her hands to her mouth. Lily waited until the shock had passed slightly, all the while giving her sister a sad smile.

"What-how-what are you doing here?" Petunia said, her voice shaking slightly and she felt her eyes filling with tears.

"I needed to speak to you." Lily replied, still looking at her sadly, but the smile had gone.

"But how did you?-"

"It's a magic thing, it doesn't matter, I only have enough time to tell you what I have to and then I need to leave." Lily said.

Petunia nodded, "Oh...okay." She was still in awe, her sister, her Lily, that she hadn't seen for almost 20 years, was sitting right in front of her, looking just as young as the last time she had seen her.

Lily tucked a piece of her dark red hair behind her ear, the sad look in her eyes got sadder. "Firstly, I wanted to say..._thank you_, Tuny, thank you for looking after Harry for all those years."

Petunia felt the guilt wash over her, but nodded nonetheless and she made to try and hold Lily's hand, expecting it not to work, but it did. She held Lily's hand firmly in both of hers, it was cold as ice.

"But, Tuny..." she trailed off, her eyes filling with tears and Petunia felt a tear slip down her own cheek and Lily continued, "How could you?"

Petunia knew what she was talking about, exactly what she had been feeling not a moment ago. She shook her head, tears falling fast.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered, looking down, she couldn't bear to look at her sister, with the knowledge of how she had betrayed her.

"All I ever wanted for him was to be happy," Lily said, her voice was small, her green eyes sparkling with tears, "And you couldn't even do that for me?"

"I have no words," Petunia said, still looking down.

"You promised me, that even if I couldn't look after him, that you would. And from the moment he was put under your care, you rejected him," Lily said, and Petunia wished she would stop, but she knew she deserved it, "Was it..was it because of what happened when we were children? Was it payback for how you felt about me?"

"I..." Petunia didn't know what to say, she couldn't find any words to express how truly sorry she was.

"If it was...Tuny I'm sorry. I'm so sorry that you felt that way, I know how difficult it was for you, but...I just thought that you would be able to show my son what was never shown to you."

"Lily, I can't explain because I don't _know_. I don't know how I could fail you so badly, I don't know how I could be so stupid, so disgusting. All I can say, is that if I could change it all, I would." Petunia said, looking her sister in the eyes.

"It's too late, it always has been. If we could change half the things that happened, James and I...we would still be alive. We could've raised Harry the way he was meant to be raised." Lily told her.

"I'm sorry, Lily," Petunia said on a sob, "I'm sorry."

"I know...I am too." Lily said grasping her sister's hands with her own, "But...I forgive you, because you kept him safe and that was what he needed the most."

Petunia looked at her, "You do?"

"I do."

She leaned forward and kissed her sister on the cheek.

"I have to go." Lily said, getting up.

"I miss you." Petunia said quietly and Lily nodded and then very slowly, she started fading.

"I love you, Lily." Petunia said a bit more loudly. Lily looked at her and, smiling through her sadness, she whispered,

"Always."


End file.
